For the Good of the People: an interpretive analysis of Chinese volunteerism in the critical matter of care at the start of the pandemic

ABSTRACT

Purpose

China employed a unique volunteerism system where health care providers outside of Hubei Province, the epicentre, travelled to reverse the devastation wrought by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) at its global onset. The aim is to study the unique circumstances of Chinese volunteerism in the context of continuing pandemic threats, specifically exploring the experiences of 20 Chinese nurse and physician volunteers fighting COVID-19 during the outbreak.

Methods

Interviews were done through video calling.

Results

Using content analysis with a hermeneutic perspective, emerging patterns showed the ways in which China’s particular manifestation of volunteerism teaches us how to engage global threats of this nature. The overarching lesson, For the Good of the People, was manifested in several dynamic and overlapping themes: 1) Reaching for Professional Standards Even in Crisis; 2) Constantly Caring Through Failures and Successes; and 3) Holding Fast to the Common Good. The devastation was met by the resilience of volunteers, who overcame profound challenges managing patient care.

Conclusions

Volunteerism required sacrifice and tremendous support in the form of training and administrative direction, family support, and peer collaboration. Volunteers’ physical and psychosocial wellbeing was a priority. Recognizing the representative themes can help societies plan for continuing and future events.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• volunteerism
• China
• qualitative research
• professional relationships
• delivery of health care

Acknowledgments

We thank nurses and physicians who shared their experiences and stories.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The dataset can be accessed using the link: https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Transcript_Data/21586035

Ethics statement

Ethical approvals were obtained from Institutional Review Boards at University of Missouri-St. Louis (approval number:275305) and Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine (approval number: 2020LWKY022).

Additional information

Funding

This work was not supplied by any funding.

Notes on contributors

Fan Li

Fan Li is a PhD in Nursing. She is currently an Adjunct Professor at College of Nursing at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Chunyun Gu

Chunyun Gu is a nurse at the Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School.

Yanqun Hu

Yanqun Hu is a Masters-prepared nurse at Hainan General Hospital.

Roxanne Vandermause

Roxanne Vandermause is Dean and Professor of Nursing at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She is well-known in the areas of health transition and recovery and hermeneutic phenomenology.

Anne F. Fish

Anne F. Fish is a Professor of Nursing and PhD Program Director at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She is an expert in cross-cultural nursing care, collaboration, and research.

Zehui Zhou

Zehui Zhou is a Research Assistant in Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Xiaodan Yuan

Xiaodan Yuan is a Masters-prepared nurse researcher at the Department of Health Education, Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine.

Qianqian Zhou

Qianqian Zhou is a Masters-prepared nurse at the Nursing College in Huzhou University.

Junya Zhu

Junya Zhu is the Director of Yale-China Health Programs. She is an expert in patient experiences and outcomes, health care quality, patient safety, and health-related quality of life. She works closely with the Health Advisory Committee and partners in China to provide strategic leadership and program execution for Yale-China’s health program work.

Qingqing Lou

Qingqing Lou is the director of the Department of Health Education, Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine.